A Model for Resilience: The Post-Harvest Loss Venture in Mozambique
By: Mohamed Gamal Elamin
Across the globe, smallholder farmers are a cornerstone of food-security, producing 70 per cent of the world’s food. Yet, paradoxically, they are among the most vulnerable to food insecurity. This reality is starkly evident in Mozambique, where smallholder farmers struggle with challenges like climate disturbances and post-harvest losses.
Globally, one-third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted. In developing countries, the adoption of post-harvest storage and handling technologies remains low by smallholder farmers, despite their proven benefits. This results in post-harvest losses of up to 40 per cent of the food produced along the value chain.
To address this challenge, the World Food Programme (WFP) launched the Post-Harvest Loss Venture (PHLV) to scale up the adoption of post-harvest loss management technologies among smallholder farmers and value chain actors. This initiative, implemented in collaboration with public and private-sector entities and local governments, promotes sustainable business models for managing post-harvest losses, enhancing both food security and income for smallholder farmers.
By implementing innovative business models to boost the adoption of PHL technologies, WFP ensures commercial viability for value and supply chain actors.
In Mozambique, WFP’s efforts have significantly improved access to post-harvest storage solutions. In 2023 alone, over 3.5 million hermetic bags were sold nationwide. Additionally, 7,000 smallholder farmers in Tete Province received 280 silos distributed across the districts of Changara, Marara, and Cahora-Bassa.
Transforming lives: Fatima’s story
One farmer benefiting from this initiative is 60-year-old Fatima Cachave, a widow from Tete Province. Fatima cares for six grandchildren, and her family’s livelihood depends on their 4-hectare farm. However, the 2024 El Niño-induced drought devastated her crops, leaving her family with no harvest. “We sowed the seeds, but nothing grew,” she lamented.
Fortunately, Fatima was prepared. In 2023, she participated in WFP’s “Zero Post-Harvest Loss” initiative, funded by Cartier Philanthropy. This program trained over 200,000 farmers in Tete Province on improved storage and sowing techniques, including seed placement and spacing.
Before this training, Fatima and other farmers stored their grain in traditional raffia bags, which often led to quick spoilage. After receiving training, she began using the silos received from WFP and hermetic bags, which dramatically improved the quality of stored grain. “The product in the old raffia bags would rot,” Fatima shared. “With the silos and hermetic bags, the quality is excellent for a long time.”
Following her good 2023 harvest, Fatima dried and stored four carts of sorghum and maize in her silos. When the drought struck in 2024, she was able to feed her family with the stored grains from the previous year.
“In November 2023, we harvested, dried the corn, and stored it in the silo. By June 2024, the grain was still good, not rotten, and ready to eat. If we didn’t have the silo, we’d have nothing to eat now. I’m very grateful.”
Expanding the Impact: Doris’s Experience
Another farmer impacted by the PHLV and other WFP’s training on climate-smart agriculture is Doris Sabão, a 55-year-old father of eight. Since 2019, Doris has participated in a WFP climate change initiative, learning improved farming techniques such as proper seed spacing, mulching, and composting.
“This project has taught us a lot,” Doris explained. “Before, we sowed seeds randomly, but now we use planting lines. The plants are smaller but yield more fruit.” These techniques helped him increase his harvests from one cart to three in previous years.
Looking ahead, Doris hopes to use future earnings from his improved yields to purchase more agricultural inputs and pay for his children’s high school tuition.
The PHLV initiative demonstrates the transformative power of practical, sustainable interventions in empowering smallholder farmers. By reducing post-harvest losses and promoting efficient farming techniques, WFP is not only enhancing food security but also helping farmers like Fatima and Doris build resilience in the face of climate challenges.
With this and other techniques like compassing or mulching, Mr. Doris says that, in previous years, he managed to harvest up to three carts. The other trainees also reported that “the plants were larger with few fruits; now, the plants are smaller but have more fruits”.
Using these techniques, and if the next harvest is fruitful, Doris plans to use the income to buy more agri-inputs and also pay for the tuition and school of his two children who are currently studying in high school.
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